Century Casinos Inc (CNTY) 2012 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Thank you, Clint. I'm happy to have all of you join us for this call, following the release of our fourth-quarter and full-year 2012 earnings a couple of hours ago. With me are, as usual, Erwin Haitzmann, Co-CEO and Chairman of the Company, and Margaret Stapleton, Executive Vice President of Finance. Following our prepared remarks, we will then turn over the call to your questions.

Before we begin, I need to remind you that, in our remarks today, we will be discussing forward-looking information, which involves a number of risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from our forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. We provide a detailed discussion of the various risk factors in our SEC filings, and we encourage you to review these filings.

In addition, throughout our call, we may refer to several non-GAAP financial measures, including, but not limited to, adjusted EBITDA. Reconciliations of our non-GAAP performance and liquidity measures to the appropriate GAAP measures can be found in our news release, and in the 10-K and 10-Q filings, all of which are available in the Investment section of our website at cnty.com.

During 2012, we made significant progress with the implication of our strategy to increase shareholder value and improve our financial flexibility. We executed this strategy against the backdrop of ongoing uncertainty in the macroeconomic picture and consumer weakness in pretty much all markets we operate in. The recovery of the gaming industry has been protracted and rather difficult; but despite these challenges, we have acted aggressively to improve our performance and position our Company for further growth.

In the fourth quarter, we managed to increase net operating revenues by 1% and net earnings by 6% compared to the fourth-quarter of 2011. But as business levels softened in the latter part of the year, adjusted EBITDA fell 9% in the year-over-year comparison. Our Century Casino and Hotel in Edmonton, Canada, again, led all properties with excellent results and an EBITDA margin of 33%.

We also continued to strengthen our balance sheet, which, as of December 31, 2012, showed $24.8 million in cash and cash equivalents, and only $3.6 million in debt obligations for a net cash position of $21.2 million. This net cash of $0.88 per share and an increase of 32% compared to the net cash position at the same time a year ago. That strong balance sheet, compared with our $27 million credit agreement with Bank of Montreal, puts us in a great position to continue the pursuit of new development and acquisition opportunities in any regulated market worldwide.

Total cash CapEx in the quarter was $1.2 million for approximately 6.5% of revenue, spent mainly on projects such as the refurbishment of hotel rooms in Cripple Creek, improvements to the Calgary property, and gaming equipment for ship casinos. Book value per share as of December 31 was $4.89. But we believe the most exciting news made for you today is the pending acquisition of the two-thirds majority of Casinos Poland Limited. We have received the approvals from the other shareholder as well as from the Ministry of Finance, and are just a few administrative steps away from closing, which we expect around mid-April. With the closing of this deal, we intend to consolidate Casinos Poland with our 2012 financials. And based on the 2012 results, this will increase our reported revenues, EBITDA, and net earnings significantly.

With that, I will now highlight the quarterly results of each individual property. Our largest casino, the Century Casino and Hotel in Edmonton, Canada, which now has grown to 758 gaming machines and 35 gaming tables, had another strong performance. Revenue was up 3% and EBITDA was up 6% (technical difficulty) [for] the year, mostly driven by a 17% increase in cash drop at the gaming tables. It seems that our focus on Asian VIP play, supported by themed events, concerts, and buffets, is paying off very well. Hotel and S&P revenues were also up nicely, 9% and 2%, respectively. This probably accounted for a 37% of the Company's total revenues if we exclude Casinos Poland. Including Casinos Poland, Edmonton's share of total revenues would be 21%.

The Players Cup Loyalty Program grows steadily, and we continue to market the showroom with light entertainment, events, concerts, and various catering functions, to drive traffic to the Casino. In Calgary, revenues declined 7% because of lower slot coining and a lower table hold percentage. EBITDA, which was negative in Q3, turned to a positive $150,000. Obviously, that's still not satisfying, but business volumes were not too bad, a table drop of 10% quarter-over-quarter. We've added another Easy Baccarat table to capitalize on the increased Baccarat action. And we're making good progress on the non-gaming revenue generators as well, with bowling up 20% and a 1100-seat showroom running third-party events only, with no financial risk to us.

Moving fast to Colorado, our Century Casino and Hotel in Central City had a mixed quarter. Slot coining was up 4%, but table drop declined 8%, leading to a modest overall 1% increase in revenues and a reduction in EBITDA. In Cripple Creek, revenues as well as EBITDA declined 6% each, as we saw the same pattern as in Central City with slot coining up, but table dropped down significantly. Colorado gaming market remains very competitive, with heavy promotional activities and extensive -- expansive media marketing. We continue to focus on VIP player development and consistent daily promotions. Our current marketing and promotions strategy focuses strongly on Casino weekend promotions, and customer volumes are highest, as well as on food and retail offers.

The 14 casinos we operate and manage on cruise ships and in Aruba saw revenues decline 2%, with 620 slots and 70 gaming tables. This segment of our operations currently generates 10% of the Company's revenues. That percentage will go down to about 6% once Casinos Poland is consolidated, but we believe we can add a few more ships -- ship casinos in the near future to solidify our position as the leader in the cruise ship casino market.

Last, but not least, let me give you an update on the performance of Casinos Poland. Revenues in the quarter increased by 12% compared to the fourth quarter of 2011, mainly driven by a strong performance of the casino at the Marriott Hotel in the capital city of Warsaw, by the newly opened locations in Lodz, Krakow, and Poznan are still in the ramp-up phase.

The Casinos Poland brand is exceptionally strong, as demonstrated by market share that consistently has been between 40% and 50% in recent years. With the pending closing of the transaction that gives us two-thirds ownership position in Casinos Poland Limited, we are very excited about the opportunities lying ahead, especially in terms of creating higher operating efficiencies and improving operating margins. For the year 2012, Casinos Poland generated approximately $44 million, and that's US dollars, in revenues, and approximately $4.6 million US in EBITDA. Using these numbers, the price we paid for an additional 33% comes out to approximately 0.5 times revenue or 4.5 times EBITDA. That is quite attractive and along the lines of other great deals we are striving after.

As I'm sure you gather from this property-by-property summary, the year 2012 reflected the benefits of diversification as we produced solid results on a consolidated basis, while facing some discrete challenges at a couple of properties. And, when completed, we expect the Casinos Poland transaction to provide accretive growth as well as additional diversity to reduce volatility of operating results.

In 2012, as a result of focusing on rightsizing our business, engaging our customers and employees, focusing on generating free cash flow and revenue, and renewing our assets, we have become a stronger, cleaner, and leaner company. We have invested in our properties in order to remain competitive and to extend the property lifecycles, and we have been prudently active on the M&A front as well.

Century Casinos, we've continued to pursue accretive acquisitions and development projects in any regulated casino market worldwide that meet or exceed our return investment hurdles and are within our risk tolerance. We are investigating opportunities around the globe, including Europe, North America, and Southeast Asia.

Going forward, we will try to pursue projects with projected EBITDA returns in excess of 20% on investment. As the Company's largest shareholders, this management team naturally has a vested interest in pursuing only those projects that will make some more shareholder returns in the long run, while at the same time adding value to the local communities through responsible operations and employment creation. Your interests and our interests are aligned. Casinos Poland acquisition will transform our company by increasing scale, diversity, and opening up good opportunities in the future. We believe we have a strong financial profile, room for further operation improvements, and a bright future ahead.

In conclusion, we are excited about 2013 and the path we have laid out for our Company.

With that, I thank you for your attention and open the floor to questions. Clint, go ahead, please.

(Operator Instructions) Chris Armbruster, B. Riley & Co.

Thanks for taking my questions. Are you planning on filing updated pro forma financials after Casinos Poland, the acquisition, closes? Or are you going to wait until your next quarter to put all that into print?

Peggy, can you follow on that?

We will wait until next quarter to put that into print.

Okay.

We are not required by the SEC to file an 8-K with the financials for this year.

Okay. Fair enough. And then, as far as Calgary goes, what do you think is a reasonable estimate for the pace of change there? I know the Casino's had its ups and downs, and struggled a little bit with profitability consistently. But is -- should fiscal '13 be the quarter that we expect -- I mean, so the year that we expect the Casino to kind of move back to profitability on a full-year basis? Or is that further out?

Hi. This is Erwin. We expect 2013 to be the turnaround year.

Okay. And then, do you have any additional updates on the Racino project in Calgary that you guys are working on?

No. There's no updates. They're still checking various things, and also have to consider some issues that have to do with the applicant company, that's United Horsemen of Alberta, Inc. as to liability issues. And we have not started any kind of serious development or construction.

Okay. And just one more. On the additional acquisitions that you guys are looking at, is the Casinos Poland integration going to take a lot of time? Is it something that you're going to be focused on this year? Or is there room to potentially announce or close another acquisition in fiscal '13?

I didn't understand the last part of your sentence, please.

Yes. I'm just wondering if the transaction with Casinos Poland, if that's going to be kind of the thing that you're focusing on this year? Or are you -- obviously, it's opportunity-driven, but are you expecting that there is going to be another acquisition or something that happens in fiscal '13?

Oh, I see what you mean. Well, we are right in the middle of focusing on Poland from an operations perspective already. But it's not necessarily the only thing we look at in 2013. If -- we are looking at various opportunities now and it's opportunity-driven, to an extent.

Okay. Good to know. Congratulations on your progress this quarter.

Thank you. Thanks a lot.

(Operator Instructions) Russ Silvestri, SKIRITAI.

My question was related to Poland, and the leases and the real estate, and how that's secured, and how do you pay for it? Is it all percentage of win? Or how is that tied up?

In most cases, we simply pay a straight rent to the property owners. So that's not percentages of revenue or profit; it's a fixed rent based on market terms.

And are the rents fixed for a certain period of time?

Yes.

Could you elaborate? Is that like a three-year, five-year, one-year?

Particularly, it's a six-year period.

Okay. And, I would assume, since you're just starting it, it would be six years going forward from here?

No, depending on when we did the most recent amendment, probably anywhere between four and five years from now.

Okay.

Going forward.

Great. And then, since the situation on the cruise ship that happened in -- off the coast of the United States, have you noticed much decline in the number of passengers going on ships? Or has it stayed relatively stable?

Oh, it's very stable, yes. No, we have -- we are mostly on the smaller lines and they're enjoying a very good year.

Okay. Great. Thank you.

Thanks, Russ.

And we have no additional questions at this time.

(multiple speakers) Thank you, everybody, for your interest in Century Casinos and your participation in the call.

We did have one question queue up, if you'd like. It's from the site of Corey Yeap with Wells Capital. Go ahead, your line's open.

Thanks for taking my call. Were any of your properties negatively affected by weather?

This is Erwin. Just a little bit. Colorado, South, a little, and so did Calgary and Edmonton in the last weeks. Every now and then, we had a weekend which was impacted. But I would say that, within the regular weather pattern, we had something acted every year.

All right. Thank you.

Nothing totally unusual -- out of the total -- out of the ordinary.

And we have no additional questions.

Great. Thanks again, everybody. And for a recording of the call, please visit the Financial Results section of our website at cnty.com. Thank you for your participation.